World Without Superman
by Superfan2
Summary: Clark Kent has just turned 22 and finished four years of college at Shuster University in Capitol City. He's publicly been Superboy for 3 of those 4 years. He's decided to move to the big city - Metropolis - and make his debut as journalist and as Superman. Friends and family share his joy in his upcoming new life, but enemies conspire against him.
1. A New Life

**World Without Superman - A New Life**

The past six months had been the happiest of Clark Kent's young life. It was the best of times and still Clark knew better times lay ahead.

He had managed, as Superboy, to save scores of lives in both Capitol City and Smallville. His enemies, he was amazed at how many he had made since becoming Superboy just 3 years ago, were either in prison or on the run. He had eased into a nightly patrol routine over both Capitol City and Smallville with crime rates down sharply in both towns as a result.

His confidence was growing in his role of Superboy. – the Threesome, as they called themselves, were in prison with decade long sentences. Metallo, Odessa and Lex Luthor were the biggest threat he had ever faced. Despite their planning, their powers and their scientific knowledge, they had failed to take him down in their professed "final" attack. Kryptonite, sonic weapons and a solar energy blocker not withstanding.

Most important of all, Clark and Lana had fallen in love and, making it sweeter, the deception was over. Lana had figured out that Clark was Superboy a few months ago. His only regret – that he had not had enough faith in her, in himself, to reveal his secret.

Clark recalled that day – it was a crystal clear fall mid-West day. One of those days when everything is revealed. And so it was Clark's true nature, his dual identity, was revealed to Lana that day.

Lana had suspected for a while, and Clark had been tempted to tell her for a while. Lana decided to determine once and for all. As Clark was bending over getting into a car, Lana pulled a long pin out and stuck it sharply into Clark's rear. The pin bent, Clark didn't react. The gig was up. To this day they both laugh about that day. The "buns of steel" test as Lana had come to call it.

That aside, Lana was his first true love and, luckily for him, he was hers.

There were other important people in Clark's life. His best friend TJ. TJ had moved to Metropolis in his third year at Shuster U. to pursue an interest in journalism. TJ was now working for the Daily Planet - his internship turning into a full-time job. TJ and Clark were close and Clark had missed TJ when he moved away. Recently, T J had returned to Capitol City with a young co-worker. PhotographerJimmy Olsen. TJ's excuse for coming to town was that he wanted to show Jimmy America's heartland. In reality, TJ wanted to convince Clark to move to the big city and pursue a career in journalism. In truth, Clark had already decided to do both. TJ's visit only confirmed Clark in his decision.

All of this meant moving to Metropolis. Was it just coincidence that Lana had been offered a job at Metropolis University? No, Clark thought it was a sign. He and Lana were destined to start their careers and their lives as a couple in Metropolis.

/

**I found this story on my backup PC. Wrote it 2 years ago, but it had disappeared from this site.**

**Reposting it. It is the precursor story to Perchance To Dream and Origin of Toyman.**

**Like those stories, it is based on the Superboy TV series with elements from other Superman incarnations as well.**

**BTW, the needle in the rear end thing - it was indeed one of the final scenes in the final episode of the series which ran for 4 years.**

**Please review - reviews make the writing effort worthwhile. There are a couple other chapters which I plan on posting also.**


	2. Unnecessary Fears?

**World Without Superman - Unnecessary Fears?**

In the month's leading up to the Metropolis move Clark had long talks with his parents and Lana. He had decided it was time for Superboy to become a man, Superman. That debut would take place in Metropolis. Everything that had happened in recent months pointed to Metropolis and to Superman – it was as if destiny was pushing him there. Not just him Clark Kent, but the part of him that was Kal-El. Metropolis was the most important city in the world and a "boy", super or not, did not fit into that paradigm.

Clark's repeated dreams of "showing them the way" meant something. Clark was sure of that. He was also sure that he could only show the way as a man – as Superman.

Lana's concern, and that of his parents, was that the big city meant bigger crime and more powerful foes than he had faced so far. But Clark countered that he was invulnerable. Nothing, no one could hurt him. Even Luthor – now that Clark had thrown the last unaccounted for piece of kryptonite into space and towards the sun where it would eventually be vaporized.

The few pieces remaining on Earth were either safely locked away in Professor Peterson's lab in Capitol City or in the lead-lined box Clark kept in a hidden compartment in his apartment. The same "safe place" where his suits, capes and boots were stored. Working with Professor Peterson he had developed a sort-of cloaking technology which made his secret room impervious to scanning or being broken into.

Just to be on the safe side, Clark told his parents and Lana that he had asked Professor Peterson to do a full study of meteor shower records from around the time Clark's spaceship arrived in Smallville. Did any other meteor showers strike Earth 22 years ago. The only "suspect" area still left unchecked was Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Clark, as Superboy, promised them he would personally survey that area in the next few weeks. From a distance of course – he could now detect kryptonite from a safe distance with a device Professor Peterson has developed. The good professor was trying to miniaturize it to fit into the belt buckle of Superboy's suit – an early warning kryptonite detection system.

Lana protested that Clark was assuming kryptonite containing meteors hadn't hit Earth since his arrival 22 years ago. Clark replied that it seemed very unlikely, but he couldn't absolutely rule out that possibility. To that end Peterson was working to enhance the kryptonite detector so that it could register the unique radiation from scores of miles away. Right now its range was just 200 feet, but once enhanced it would be practical for Clark to do a total Earth scan to absolutely guarantee there was no more kryptonite.

Clark reminded all three that, other than kryptonite, nothing could kill him. And, unlike Professor Peterson, Clark was not totally convinced kryptonite could kill him. Mega-weapons, like Luthor's missiles which layed him low a few years back, were no longer effective against him. His powers and invulnerability continued to grow the longer he lived under a yellow sun. Professor Peterson had confirmed that in his latest series of tests. He surmised Clark could survive a direct nuclear explosion - though the Professor didn't recommend Superboy test out the theory. Lana and Clark's parents didn't appreciate Clark's attempt at a joke.

Martha, ever the protective mother and not wanting to leave any stone unturned, brought up sonic weapons which had proved effective at disabling her son on several occasions as well as the metal the Schote boy managed to restrain him with.

Always the dutiful son, Clark responded directly to his mother's concerns.

Yes, sonic weapons are able to disorient and temporarily disable him. But nothing more. They can't kill him - worst case scenario the perpetrator using it against him gets away. Professor Peterson is trying to develop some sort of anti-sonic technology to counter ultra-high pitched sound waves.

Besides, the technology needed to make sonic weaponry is complex and hard to come by - making its cost extremely prohibitive. Its not like sonic weapons will be on special in the anti-Superman weapons aisle of the local hardware store. Clark expected to only rarely encounter such weapons.

Martha had not appreciated Clark's joking about this and gave him one of her famous looks.

Clark went on about the metal Schote, or Knick Knack as he called himself, had restrained him with. After Knick's gal Friday had released him from the examining table Knick had strapped him to and, getting a promise from her that she'd stay there until he returned, he'd taken off and caught Knick. Unfortunately, when he came back to the warehouse, Knick's sidekick and the metal were gone.

Both his parents chimed in that he was too trusting in people and it'd get him into trouble in the future. Did he really think Knick's partner would wait for him to return?! Not everyone, unfortunately, believes in truth and justice.

Yes, he'd agreed, he should have taken the metal when he'd left the warehouse so it could be analyzed. In any case Clark, in his Superboy persona, told Professor Peterson about the incident. Without giving anything away, Peterson got information from CADMUS and developed a theory that the metal's origin was extraterrestrial.

Knowing that no metal in a yellow sun system could restrain Superboy and that kryptonite metal weakens and sickens him, which this metal didn't, Peterson surmised it might be from a blue sun system. Those were extremely rare. Just a few were known to exist and no planets were thought to circle a blue sun - well, until last year when one was discovered. CADMUS named it Daxam. Peterson thinks the metal may have originated from there.

Martha had admitted to Clark and the others of a nightmare she'd had. Clark restrained by this mystery metal and dumped into a well never to be seen again.

Clark told his mother that that will never happen and indeed he believed, given enough time, he'd be able to break out of restraints made from the metal. Well or no well.

Clark's confidence re-assured them. Jonathon broke the tension by jokingly admonishing Clark never to use sunscreen, to get a good set of earplugs and to stay away from wells.

And so, everything was now set for the Metropolis move.

But, just as destiny was pointing Clark to Metropolis and to becoming Superman, so it seemed that same destiny was pointing Lex Luthor to Metropolis and to becoming a super-villain. The world's greatest superhero and the world's greatest super-villain had both chosen to make Metropolis their home.

Ying and yang? A universal balance between good and evil? Or simply randon chance?

Neither Clark nor Lana nor his parents had seemed to recall Clark's multi-dimensional experience more than a year ago now. Parallel worlds existed and in the worlds Clark visited there was a Superboy and a Lex Luthor. And Lana and his parents. All intertwined together as much as Clark. Lana, his parents and Luthor were here on Earth. Though with vastly different relationships to each other in those worlds.

Fate or chance?

**/**

**Please review.**

**In the series Luthor indeed was able to knock out Superboy in the early seasons using missles and such but those same weapons became less and less effective against Superboy anymore as the series continued. Professor Peterson, in the series, speculated that Superboy's power and invulnerability grew in magnitude the longer he lived under Earth's yellow sun. Hence the reference in the story. **

**In the 5th season the plan was to officially name the mystery metal Daxamite. The 5th and 6th seasons did not come about, even though ratings were high in season 4, because Lois and Clark was planned to debut on TV. **

**The multi-dimensional reference come from the episode 'Roads Not Taken'.**

**The sonic weaponry references come from eps 'Luthor Unleashed' and 'Threesome'.**

**The daxamite reference comes from the 'Knick Knack' ep.**

**The mega-weapon /missle reference comes from 'With Thee I Take'.**

**Again, please review!**


	3. Necessary Plans

**Necessary Plans**

Luthor. imprisoned though he was, had his sights set on Metropolis. As he passed the remaining days of his sentence, he was making plans.

Even in prison the coincidences seemed to favor Luthor - insofar as Luthor's war with Superboy was concerned.

The infamous Knick Knack was serving a sentence in the same Capitol City prison as Luthor. Brought to "justice", as he had been, by the overblown Boy Scout. He and Knick occupied adjacent cells. It would prove a fortuitous pairing.

Knick was, on the surface, more clown than villain - but he had the potential to be a formidable villain. His "toys" were more than simply items of personal pleasure. They were deadly and even Superboy had felt tinges of pain on several occasions when engaging the "clown's" toys.

To Lex it was wasted potential and so Luthor looked down on Knick. Luthor recognized the "imp's", as Luthor privately referred to him, genius, but ... genius not used, genius not engaged was something Lex could not countenance.

Still, as they say, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Luthor buttered up to his next door cell-mate. Over time getting Knick to reveal information about his more potent weapons. Specifically, the ones that seemed to affect Superboy.

Knick told almost everything to Luthor. Including specs for a state-of-the-art Superboy monitoring device he'd invented and the location where he'd stashed a metal he claimed Superboy couldn't break free from. Luthor had his doubts about this "super-metal", but made arrangements to get hold of it. The monitoring device is what really intrigued Lex.

The

specifications for the device were impressive. Lex was a bit jealous - why hadn't he thought of this?!

Knick had used it to track Superboy on days he needed to rob a bank to get cash. Making sure Superboy was far away and would not interfere with his heist. And indeed, it seemed Superboy's super-senses were unable to detect the tiny drone-like orb. Knick, as Lex recalled, successfully managed to break into a number of Capitol City banks without any interference from Superboy.

When Luthor asked Knick if he'd used the drone for anything else the answer was no. Luthor left it at that. If the tighted do-gooder really can't detect the device then the possibilities were staggering. That Knick had not considered them was more proof of his wasted genius.

Luthor smuggled a message out to his new associate Asabi with the drone specs and a terse ending - "TrackBlue".

For Luthor everything was falling into place. If the metal and tracking drone were as Knick claimed them to be then the final two-pieces were in place to end the Boy of Steel's life once and for all. The key piece, kryptonite - he had that covered. Despite Superboy confiscating his last piece in their most recent battle. The one he was in jail for now.

A year ago. knowing he had but one piece of kryptonite left in his possession, Luthor began a serious search for more. At first it was like looking for a needle in a haystack. It was not going well until he realized the answer was staring him in the face.

Smallville, the green gems he'd found growing up there. Trinkets to a 10 year but, yes, yes, yes!

Lex had given a necklace with one of the "trinkets" dangling from it to a young Shuster University coed. Trying to impress her, Lex set up a cook-in at her dorm room. Not great at meal-making, it turned into a disaster and Lex set the room on fire with sterno. In a matter of a minute Superboy arrived - Lex and his date struggling to escape the smoke.

Just as Superboy moved to pull them out of the room, he collapsed. It never dawned on Lex until now. He'd assumed the smoke got to Superboy too but no - it was the "trinket" on the necklace. A tiny piece of kryptonite. Lex and his friend escaped the room on their own and shortly later, the necklace out of range, Superboy recovered and put out the fire.

The meteror shower in Smallville 22 years ago. The green glowing "gems" he had found growing up there. Superboy making his debut in Capitol City, but his two closest friends were Lana Lang and Clark Kent. Both born and bred in Smallville. It all came together!

Lex immediately focused his search on Smallville. Nothing - and why would there be? Superboy would have long ago cleansed the area of the deadly green glowing rock. Logically, there must have been other meteor hits around the world at the same time. Luthor identified 5 locations and hit pay dirt on the last. Addis Ababa. He'd had Asabi scour the hit zone near the Ethiopian city and, just two weeks ago, Luthor got the confirmation he was waiting for. Asabi smuggled a message into Lex. All it said was "GoGreen". Bingo - Luthor was set.

Ironically, just weeks after Asabi had confiscated a dozen baseball sized pieces of kryptonite in Ethiopia, Superboy made his search of the area. As he'd promised his parents and Lana. Finding nothing, he reported back to them that all was good. No kryptonite found. He was now essentially invincible no matter what the new cast of villains he'd face in Metropolis could throw at him.

**/**

**Preview:**

**The drone he'd had built could track Superboy to within an area of several hundred feet. That wasn't perfect but good enough. And best of all the super-fool didn't realize he was being monitored. Lex determined that the alien spent a lot of time at Lana's apartment complex. Including most nights. Lana shacking up with the alien?! It disgusted him!**

**Oh how far Lana had sunk - a strong woman, intelligent, independent and beautiful. But she went all weak in the knees around him. Tights and bulge were all it took to reduce Lana to ... it made him sick to think about it. And now she was sleeping with the alien. And to think Lex had once been attracted to Lana!**

**Part of Lex didn't want to believe it and so he had a listening device placed in Lana's apartment. Using the cloaking technology from the drone to shield the device and guarantee Superboy wouldn't be able to detect it.**

**What Lex was about to learn would shock even him.**

**/**

**Hope you enjoyed. This was one of my first efforts at fiction writing hence the narrative format. I've since been able to do dialog with some degree of success, but it is hard for me.**

**The necklace/fire reference comes from the season 1 episode ep 'Kryptonite Kills'. **

**Asabi reference comes from 'Lois &amp; Clark' series.**

**Addis Ababa as a source for kryptonite meteor fragments comes from - if you don't know you aren't a Superman fan. Just teasing. Comes from 'Superman: The Movie".**

**Finally, Gerard Christopher, star of the series for seasons 2, 3 and 4, in interviews from the time noted this about filming. The series was directed towards teens and Gerard is well endowed so up-close scenes were usually shot from the waist up and profile shots of him, in the suit, avoided as much as possible. Fun piece of series trivia. Hence the reference to Lana going all weak in the knees and Lex being jealous of what lies below the belt.**

**Still have several chapters left. Please let me know if you want me to post more.**

**As always, please review. The good, bad and ugly.**

.


	4. Discovery!

**Discovery!**

Oh how Lana had disappointed him. A strong woman, intelligent, independent and beautiful. But she went all weak in the knees around him. Tights and bulge was all it took to reduce Lana to ... it made him sick almost. To think he once was attracted to her.

And now?! The tracking drone Asabi had had built could track Superboy to within an area of several hundred feet. That wasn't perfect, but good enough to zero in on the alien's general location. From this Luthor determined that the alien spent a lot of time at Lana's apartment complex. Including most nights. Lana shacking up with the alien?! It disgusted him. So much for the Boy Scout's "American way".

Days after this Luthor had a listening device installed in Lana's apartment. One conversation he listened in on gave him more ammunition in his war on Superboy. Lana and Superboy were talking - well at first he'd assumed it was Superboy. How Superboy was set to move to Metropolis in a month along with Lana, how his parents had blesssd the move. Parents?! Lex's ears perked up at that!

The key part of the conversation was when Lana said, "so Superboy becomes Superman in a month's time. Making your debut in Metropolis. Don't forget Clark, you'll be holding down a full-time job at Daily Planet Communications too."

Superboy, Superman, Clark?! Now it all made sense. Clark lived in Lana's apartment complex. The drone had picked up on him in his own apartment. Clark Kent was Superboy and Lex was ecstatic.

What a discovery - the revelation of the century!

Too, Lex was embarrassed that he'd not figured it out. But he knew now, and that knowledge would further ensure his take-down of Superboy. Or Superman as the do-gooder was about to rename himself.

Lex pondered - "Lex Luthor - slayer of Superboy" or "Lex Luthor - slayer of Superman". Definitely the latter had a much better ring to it.

Luthor's discovery was not without complications. Clark was leaving for Metropolis in a month with Lana. Luthor would not be released for 2 months. He'd have to strike at Clark in Metropolis. This meant finding a totally new lair in a city he was unfamiliar with and laying the trap. The execution of which would be more difficult in Metropolis than it would have been in Capitol City.

Capitol City or Metropolis, this time Luthor would strike at the alien in a dark alley or a subterranean chamber. No one to see, no one to help the trapped Superman. That was their mistake last time. He and Metallo and Ursa struck at the Boy of Steel in broad daylight in the middle of town. Lex wanted as many as possible to see him destroy Superboy. But it backfired. Many onlookers came to Superboy's aide. Two bank guards shot at Luthor and his team. The plot fell apart quickly and Superboy took them all to jail.

No, this time there would be no witnesses, no one to help the alien. When Superman was dead, he promised himself, he'd hang the alien's body from the tallest Metropolis tower. The Daily Planet Communications building. How ironic the very building Clark would be working in. The world would indeed see his handiwork.

Luthor decided to take advantage of the time he still had left to eavesdrop on Clark. Asabi arranged to have a tiny drone camera placed inside Clark's apartment. It looked like a very small insect and it was cloaked in the anti-Superboy technology which prevented him from detecting it. The drone could follow him around the apartment and maybe provide Luthor with additional information to help in his quest to build the perfect death-trap for the alien.

If nothing else, Luthor would finally know the truth about the suit. Does it come off? Is it a part of his biologic structure? Some sort of holographic projection? Inquiring minds wanted to know.

The suit itself was truly a second skin. Lycra had nothing on it. People who saw Superboy up close would note how it didn't wrinkle at all - even if he bent over to shake someone's hand or pick something up. How the boots were, but were not. They seemed thicker than the suit but, at the same time, a projection of the suit.

The stuff of a God?! Well some felt that, but not Luthor. He'd seen Superboy up close and in distress - the time he'd lured him to a mine shaft with an explosive device planted close to Lana. And several chunks of kryptonite. It worked perfectly and Superboy was driven deep into the mine surrounded by the deadly rock after the bomb went off. Only problem was Luthor was too. The two trapped 60 feet underground. Luthor could choose to die with Superboy or not. As the whole point was for him to live on after Superboy was dead Luthor chose to live. Necessity being the mother of invention, he was forced to work with Superboy to get the two out of the mine shaft. Keeping the kryptonite as far away as possible.

/

Preview

**As they worked together to escape the shaft, Lex noticed one thing about the suit. It showed wrinkles and dirt from the cave clung to it. It was stained in places with the alien's sweat. One boot edge was separated slightly from the legging after the explosion. So no, it was not an organic projection of Superboy's body. It was separate from Superboy's body. He was sure of that. **

**Luthor believed the suit was something that Superboy put on. He could prove that now, and discover where he put it when not wearing it. Maybe, he has multiple suits?! Back-up suits?! Oh how Luthor would pay dearly for one of those. What a trophy to display!**

**Of course he could...**

/

**Hope you enjoyed.**

**The reference to the mine incident comes from the episode "Mine Games" - a play on mind games as it was really a psychological episode looking into both characters' motivations. The reference to taking down Superboy mid-day in the center of town comes from the Threesome episode.**

**The "does the suit come off" line actually originated in the Superboy series. Lana asking Clark at one point if he thinks Superboy ever takes off the suit. It was used in either Lois &amp; Clark or Superman Returns, and whichever, that show gets the credit. But no, it originated with the Superboy series.**

**Oh, if anyone is so inclined, Superboy seasons 2, 3 and 4 are now available on DVD. Sadly, just from Warner Archives section of the WB Shop. Viacom, Paramount and WB have been legally entangled over this series since 1992 when it ended. Its why it never went into rerun syndication despite being a top 10 syndicated series throughout its run.**

**WB, to their credit and in response to repeated fan requests, last year released the last 3 seasons of the series on DVD. Not cheap. $28/$29 per season with no extras. But its a step in the right direction and, if demand continues for the series DVDs, WB is considering a full on DVD release with bloopers, cast commentary and missing scenes. Both Gerard Christopher and Stacy Haiduk (Clark and Lana) are all in for this. So, if so inclined, please take a look at the WB archive and consider purchasing one or all of the DVDs. This story has not even referenced the 4 best series eps. 'Roads Not Taken' - would make for a great film, 'Who Is Superboy', 'Bride of Bizarro' and 'Out of Luck'.**

**Please review. Several chapters left so let me know if you want me to continue. I've had a number of PM's asking me to post more chapters but, truth be told, reviews/comments even if brief make it all worthwhile. **


	5. Plans

**From previous chapter...**

As they worked together to escape the shaft, Lex noticed one thing about the suit. It showed wrinkles and dirt from the cave clung to it. It was stained in places with the alien's sweat. One boot edge was separated slightly from the legging after the explosion. So no, it was not an organic projection of Superboy's body. It was separate from Superboy's body. He was sure of that.

Luthor believed the suit was something that Superboy put on. He could prove that now and discover where he put it when not wearing it. Maybe he has multiple suits?! Back-up suits?! Oh how Luthor would pay dearly for one of those. What a trophy to display.

Of course, if there was just one suit he could strip it off Superman once he was dead - hang his suit-less body from the spire atop the Daily Planet Communications tower.

/

**Plans**

Clark and Lana spent their final month in Capitol City preparing for the Metropolis move. TJ had offered Clark the extra room in his Metropolis flat and Lana's friend Amanda had done the same for her. In an arrangement that pleased both their parents, Clark and Lana decided not to move in together right away. Wait six months until both were settled in their jobs and then they'd take it from there.

Clark's last weeks as Superboy in Capitol City were uneventful. He continued his nightly patrols and the typical "crisis" he faced was getting a cat down from a tree it had gotten stuck in. After his patrols he'd land in Reeve Park near his apartment. It was perfect - he'd go into his hyper-spin and voila - Clark Kent was there when the dust settled. Literally. Anyone seeing it, which he took pains to make sure there was not, would think they'd seen a dust-devil. Very common in the Mid-West. Clark especially enjoyed the two block walk to his apartment from the park after he'd put Superboy to rest for the evening.

The hyper-spin had become the solution to having to quickly change in an emergency. Running into an empty closet or room was problematic as best. If an alleyway was present or a vacant area with no one to see him, he'd speed there and then do the hyper-spin, but the hyper-spin also worked even if there were potential onlookers. On one occasion, when someone had cried for help near him, he used an old phone booth to change. That would have been a perfect solution 20 years ago, but today there were no phone booths left. The one he had used was actually the last in Capitol City and had been preserved as an historic structure.

During this time Lana was concerned that Luthor and Knick Knack would both be released from jail in the next few months. Clark had kept tabs on them while they were in prison and both were getting early releases for good behavior. He didn't like it and, as Superboy, had asked the judge to, with Luthor anyway, reconsider his decision. But the Circuit Court had mandated early releases for good behavior due to over-crowding in the state's jails. The judge knew Luthor had tried to kill Superboy on several occasions and was sympathetic to his request, but his hands were tied.

Clark was not really concerned about Luthor's release other than the threat he might pose to others. With no more kryptonite on Earth there was nothing Luthor could do to hurt or threaten him. Plus, as he'd told Lana, Luthor will probably get as far away from Superboy as he can and set up a new base of operations. Clark saw him moving to a foreign country so as to avoid interference from him as Superboy.

What about Knick Knack Lana had persisted. They attended his early release hearing and he told the judge he would start a new life in Metropolis once released (_author's_ _comment - check out my Origin of Toyman story for the tale of Knick's move to Metropolis_). Lana knew if was just coincidence that she and Clark and Knick were all moving to Metropolis, but having him there worried her. Knick presumably had the metal, with which he'd restrained Superboy, hidden away somewhere. Lana still pestered Clark for trusting Knick's accomplice Chloe and allowing her to get away with the metal.

Clark insisted that Chloe had a good heart. If not she would have tried to have her way with him - well Superboy, when he was strapped to Knick's examination table, totally immobilized and "blind" to boot. Knick having fashioned daxamite goggles coated in lead and placed them over Superboy's eyes. Superboy's heat vision couldn't burn through the daxamite and, though he could see through daxamite, the lead coating atop it made him sightless. All that and she hadn't taken advantage of the situation or of him. That counted for something in Clark's mind.

Lana, much as Clark's parents, insisted he was too trusting in the goodness in every human's heart. Lana told Clark to "get real" - every woman in the world and a good number of men would love to have their way with Superboy if they could. Chloe chose not to only because survival and not going to jail was her prime motivation at that point. Bottom line was that the metal was out there somewhere and Knick knew where it was and would soon be free to retrieve it.

Clark gave Lana his super-villain 101 course. Luthor was a bad dude and a threat. But Knick? He was "having fun" for lack of a better term. If Knick had wanted to really harm Superboy he would have totally encased Superboy's body in the daxamite and placed him in a dark, dank cell. He didn't do that.

Thouhg not his intention, this sent Lana over the top - "So you are saying someone evil like Luthor could effectively 'kill' you with this metal"? Clark calmed her down by repeating what he'd told her a while back. Given enough time he would eventually be able to break free from daxamite restraints and burn through daxamite eye coverings.

Clark was worried about Lana. A big move like this would be stressful to anyone, but Lana did not stress easily and she seemed to be overreacting to the situation.

Clark had pressed Lana as to what was going on and Lana said she'd had a feeling someone was watching her for a week now. In her own aprartment. Reminding Clark that women in her family were known for their sixth sense. Clark did not totally discount that. He believed in the "sixth sense" and the paranormal to a degree. They both worked as interns at the Bureau For Extra-normal Affairs - ironically set up to investigate aliens as well as paranormal activity. Clark had seen enough to know that all of it could not be explained away.

As Superboy he'd had a few run-ins with "something". Magic one might call it. Whatever it was, it had affected even him. The woman who called herself Tiger Eye lured him to her lakehouse and using some kind of crystal to take partial control of his mind. He fought it, but it was like he was moving through molasses. TJ stumbled onto the scene and Tiger Eye "forced" Superboy to throw TJ across the room. Thankfully TJ suffered no serious injuries and later TJ tackled Tiger Eye managing to get the crystal from her and break the semi-trace she had Superboy in.

Other dimensions existed - he knew that. He'd visited two parallel Earth's where Superboy, Clark, Lana, Luthor all existed. But with different natures and relationships. Mxyzptlk had been his introduction to other dimensions and the ability of some, the imp Mxyzptlk, to cross between these dimensions. A lot of the true paranormal experiences were, he believed, inter-dimensional crossings and encounters.

Lana knew Clark didn't discount her intuition and appreciated his doing a thorough scan of her apartment and adjacent areas. Clark found nothing out of the ordinary and re-assured Lana it was all part of the stress induced by their major life change, Lana calmed down.

It was just days later that Clark was starteled awake early in the morning. A piercing pain in his ears, almost like the pain he'd felt the two times Luthor had used a hyper-sonic weapon against him. As he awoke the pain ceased, but his mind was filled with the words "Lex Luthor - slayer of Superman'". It quickly passed. Clark, not prone to nightmares, chalked it up to Lana's fear that she was being watched. Her stress over their move seemed to be getting to him too.

/

**Preview:**

**The next morning Clark woke to a ringing pain in his ears. He assumed it was his imagination as the only time he'd felt that before was after hyper-sonic attacks. Only Luthor knew of his sensitivity to ultra high-pitched sound waves and, with Luthor safely in jail, there was no one who could stage such an attack on him. Nothing to worry about. **

**Clark left his apartment with an occasional ringing still in his ears. Or were his ears just picking up ambient noise? That must be it.**

**A middle aged man was talking with the apartment manager in front of the unit next to his. Clark greeted them both with "Good morning" and took off for work. As Clark walked away, he heard the manager ask "will this do Mr. Asabi?". Clark was glad to hear the complex would have another tenant and especially as he and Lana would be vacating their units shortly.**

**/**

**Hope you enjoyed. **

**I like to change the cover image with each chapter. The one for this chapter shows Superboy (Gerard Christopher) and Lana Lang (Staci Haiduk). They make for a great looking couple and indeed the two dated for a while during the series run. **

**Trivia about Gerard, he was 31 when he first appeared in the series in 1990/1991. That is when this photo was taken. He was older then than Cavill is now but looks much younger. Its all heredity and Gerard's family has the youth gene. He played early to mid-20's characters until his late 30's. Today he is 56 but can pass for 40ish. **

**Not to forget Staci, - she was 22/23 in this photo and, like Gerard, is still today a very youthful (and beautiful) looking at 45/46.**

**The reference to Tiger Eye comes from the episode 'A Woman Called Tiger Eye'.**

**Mr. Mxyzptlk from the ep of the same name.**

**Other dimensions were explored in the 'Roads Not Taken' ep.**

**The last 2 seasons of the series had Lana and Clark working at the Bureau For Extra-normal Affiars. This 3 years before the X-Files would premier on television.**

**Reviews are much appreciated. I never completed the story and, if there is interest, I may pick it up again and finish it.**


	6. Mind Games

**From previous chapter:**

**The next morning Clark woke to a ringing in his ears. He assumed it was his imagination as the only time he'd had that before was after hyper-sonic attacks. Only Luthor knew of his sensitivity to ultra high-pitched sound waves and with Luthor safely in jail, there was nothing to worry about. **

**/**

**Mind Games**

Clark left his apartment the next morning with an occasional ringing still in his ears. Or was he just picking up ambient noise? Maybe that was it.

A middle aged man was talking with the apartment manager in front of the unit next to his. Clark greeted them both with "Good morning" and took off for work. As Clark walked away, he heard the manager ask "will this do Mr. Asabi?" Clark was glad to hear the complex would have another tenant and especially as he and Lana would be vacating their units shortly.

Asabi had spent the night in the unit after renting it the day before. He had gotten the manager to agree to a one month lease which, though not allowed for this apartment complex, the manager agreed to after Asabi paid him a "finder's fee".

Asabi had spent the previous afternoon making sure everything was in place. Luthor's surveillance of Clark's apartment revealed where he slept. Asabi placed the hyper-sonic weapon as close as he could to Clark's bedroom and hung a lead glass mirror between it and the wall. The camera drone in Clark's apartment was positioned, via remote control, in his bedroom and focused on the bed. Asabi planned to trigger a two second blast from the weapon early in the morning. That would quickly be followed by a very high-pitched set of words recorded by Luthor. Humans could not hear them - only Superboy and the nearby dog or cat could - "Lex Luthor - slayer of Superman."

The plan had worked perfectly. Asabi watched his monitor as he unleashed a barrage of hyper-sound directly at Superboy. Clark was startled awake and grimaced as he clasped his ears. Sitting up in bed for a few seconds and looking perplexed, Clark quickly returned to sleep. A small victory over Superboy, a minor nuisance to the alien interloper, but it was all part of Luthor's plan. Soften up the prey, get him to question his mental state and, all the while, let Superboy's belief there was no more kryptonite on Earth give him a false sense of security.

Luthor kept up the mental war against his old foe for the final weeks prior to Superboy's move to Metropolis. The drone had determined that Superboy flew in a regular pattern on his nightly patrols. Luthor had Asabi set up the sonic device to deliver his cryptic "slayer of Superman" message at key points along the patrol route. As the device only had a range of several hundred feet, positioning it correctly was important.

Also important, not to overdue it. In those last weeks all told 7 of the sonic messages were delivered to Superboy's super-sensitive eardrums. These were not the hyper-sonic waves that hurt his ears and disrupted his equilibrium, just high-frequency sound waves that only he'd hear. After each episode the drone's scan of Superboy showed him slowing down in mid-air and pausing. A quizzical look on his face.

Luthor was sure he was beginning to mentally break Superboy. Proof came of that on what would be their final visit together in Capitol City.

Luthor was informed by the warden that Superboy would be visiting him. Indeed, within an hour the overgrown Boy Scout was at his jail cell door and allowed entry by the guard.

Luthor taunted Superboy saying "Isn't justice wonderful - you've heard I'm getting early release for good behavior."

Superboy, voice raised, replied "You are getting out on a technicality, Luthor, nothing more! If I had my way..."

Before Superboy could finish Luthor interjected - "... what, you'd choke me to death?! Go ahead, do it now Superboy! Its what you've always wanted to do to me in your heart of hearts!"

Luthor's gambit worked as Superboy lunged at Luthor but stopped himself before reaching his hands towards Luthor's neck.

Luthor laughed, "My, my - a bit testy today are we Superboy? All that 24/7 truth and justice stuff getting to you? You really need a rest - have you looked at yourself in the mirror lately - you look tired and drawn."

"I'm fine Luthor! But be warned, once you're released from prison and no matter how far you go from Capitol City, I will be watching you. One mis-step and you'll be back in prison. Be warned too Luthor - I'm now invincible. Nothing can hurt or stop me. The days of your kryptonite traps are over for good!"

With that an irate Superboy quickly left the cell leaving Luthor all alone and chuckling to himself, "You watching me Superboy? I think you've got that backwards!"

During this time Luthor confirmed that the suit came off and was not a biologic projection from the alien. He removed it one legging at a time - just like humans do with pants. After his nightly patrol he'd walk back to his apartment as Clark Kent and, shortly after entering his place, he'd remove his street clothes. Underneath was the suit which he more of less spun out of and then put on sweats for the evening. Same thing in the morning. He removed the sweats and spun into the suit before putting on his street clothes.

Luthor had believed the suit was separate from Superboy all along and that he wore it under his regular clothing. His only question was how does he fit regulat street shoes over boots and how does the cape - long, thick and flowing - not show.

Luthor found his answers.

After Kent had put on the suit, he pulled on reddish/marron socks over his feet. Somehow, when he transformed into the suit, those "socks" transformed into thick boots. The magic of Kryptonian material. More than ever, Luthor was determined to strip Superboy of his suit and study the material.

Superboy never put on the cape as far as Luthor could tell. However, a small square red-patch on the upper back of the suit seemed to be the answer. It somehow transformed into the long billowing cape. Again the magic of this fabric. It could compress to almost nothing and, Luthor had a hunch, the cape somehow served as a storage place for Clark's street clothes and shoes. Compressing them to nothingness. Checking out the cape and possible hidden compartments in it was high on Luthor's agenda once he had the suit.

Lex had one more card to play in his mental assault on Superboy. This time Asabi would deliver a sonic blast to Superboy as he slept and follow it with a screaming woman shouting "Superman, he's gone beserk. He's destroying the Daily Planet building. TJ is dead."

Asabi noted that this time, after the mini-attack, Clark did not return to sleep but paced around his apartment in deep thought. The mental seeds had been planted. The mind games were now complete.

The next day Clark didn't go to work. He needed time to think. He decided to fly north to the Arctic. Once there he pondered these last few weeks. The dreams or really flickers of dreams. The repeated imagining of a sonic device being used against him when one was not.

Was it all stress at his becoming Superman? He'd never really experienced anything like this before. Was he mentally capable of losing it - he shuddered at the memory of the woman screaming Superman was destroying the Daily Planet. Clark did not think that was possible, that he'd stop himself before flying into a rage as he had been able to do with Luthor that day. But he didn't know for sure, and there was no one to talk to. His parents would be worried to death if they knew of these recent incidents and so would Lana. Besides there was no Kryptonian psychology manual he or they could refer to for help.

Then there was Tiger Eye who had managed to gain some mental control over him. What if someone gained total control and turned him into a...his body went weak at the thought.

Clark flew to a large cave he'd found here a year ago. This place gave him a sense of peace and no one knew of it or ever would. It was his own place of solitude. One day he planned to build a more proper home away from home here and call it The Fortress of Solitude.

So far he'd only stored two items in the cave. The spaceship that had carried him to Earth and a certain lead box.

He was here today to pick up that box, take it with him to TJ's place in Metropolis and have a long talk with TJ. The only one who could follow through with would have to be done and how most effectively to do it if...

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**Hope you enjoyed.**

**This was the last story chapter I wrote and, that aside, I hope it made for a good read for some of you.**

**The title for this chapter comes from the great episode 'Mine Games' which featured both Luthor and Superboy trapped in a mine with Superboy disabled by kryptonite. Both have a long talk as they lay dying and admit to things that may have surprised many a Superman aficionado. Including Superboy admitting he'd love to snap Luthor's neck but constantly fights that urge as it would make him no better than Luthor.**

**The image for this chapter comes from the episode 'Threesome' and shows Superboy under distress from a town-wide hyper-sonic barrage aimed at driving him into the open and setting him up for the kill.**

**Please review and thanks to those of you who stuck with this story.**


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